Setting the scene...
Friday night football will return to Tranmere Rovers for an FA Cup third-round tie with Premier League giants Tottenham Hotspur at a sold-out Prenton Park.
Micky Mellon’s Rovers will take a break from their Sky Bet League Two schedule, where they sit ninth in the table following a 1-1 New Year’s Day draw away at Macclesfield Town, to turn their attention to the tie with the North Londoners in front of the BT cameras.
Defeating Oxford City and Southport over replays to reach round three, TRFC face Mauricio Pochettino’s men from the capital for the first time since an FA Cup tie in February 2002.
Team news
Ollie Banks is available for selection for the FA Cup tie after a recent spell on the sidelines through injury. Shamal George has returned to his parent club Liverpool after his loan spell expired. Fellow goalkeeper Luke Pilling however is back at TRFC after a short loan spell at Ashton United.
Spurs’ season so far...
Tottenham enjoyed a positive opening half of their Premier League season - with the Lilywhites currently chasing leaders Liverpool - and into the knockout stages of the UEFA Champions League as well as the Carabao Cup semi-finals.
Under the management of Argentine Pochettino, Spurs are six points behind Liverpool (written before Liverpool's game at Manchester City on Thursday night) after securing their 16th win of the campaign following a 3-0 triumph away at Cardiff City on New Year’s Day.
The triumph in South Wales moved Spurs back up to second in the division as they climbed above current champions Manchester City as the campaign passed beyond its halfway stage over the festive period.
In the cup competitions, Spurs face London rivals Chelsea over two legs in the Carabao Cup semi-finals while in Europe, they have been drawn against German Bundesliga side Borussia Dortmund for a last 16 tie.
One to watch
Harry Kane has been in fine form for both club and country so far this season.
The 25-year-old was born in the London area of Walthamstow, and after coming through the youth ranks at Tottenham, Kane would pen professional terms at White Hart Lane.
Kane would spend the early years of his football development away from Tottenham, spending time on loan at Leyton Orient and Millwall, Norwich City and Leicester City.
The striker broke into the Spurs first-team under Tim Sherwood in the 2013/14 campaign, scoring three goals in his 10 appearances.
Since then, Kane has scored 20 or more goals in each of his past five seasons in Pochettino’s Spurs side – winning the top-flight’s Golden Boot twice, with his goals total currently at 122 from 171 appearances – including 14 strikes this term.
At international level, Kane scored 20 from his 35 senior England caps, with six of those goals coming as he helped the Three Lions to the 2018 World Cup semi-finals in Russia last summer.
Tickets
Friday night’s FA Cup third-round tie at home to Tottenham Hotspur is sold out.
Thank you to the SWA for your brilliant support as always!
To purchase tickets for upcoming TRFC matches in League Two, please click here: https://www.trfctickets.co.uk/
Match coverage
Can’t make it to Rovers’ FA Cup third-round tie at home to Tottenham Hotspur on Friday night? Don’t worry as you can keep up with goings on at Prenton Park.
You can now sign up to Tranmere Rovers’ iFollow, which allows access to extended highlights and interviews with manager Micky Mellon and a player, after the game.
To sign up, click here
Alternatively, you can follow the action through our social media channels below, with full text coverage during the fixture, followed by a match report.
Twitter: @tranmererovers
Facebook: @trfcofficial
Instagram: @tranmererovers